Tire alignment?

See post #2 : https://www.smartcarofamerica.com/forums/f353/front-end-allignment-specs-19659/

BTW, don't think the tires by themselves can be aligned......

Those are factory settings, all of the Smarts have negative camber in the rear. It does wear the inside of the rear tires, but keeps the car more stable and less of chance for a rollover...

At almost 31K on my original Continental tires the rear tires show virtually even wear all over. I did have uneven wear on a front tire which necessitated front alignment to correct. I believe the alignment issue existed from the factory. No evidence of damage to suspension/steering components. The other front tire has even wear. Will probably get about 33K on this set before changing.

BobCan said:

I called several places and they tell me they can't do a alignment on a Smart Car? What is up with that.. do I have to go to the dealer? Is there an alignment for the front and rear? My rear insides and wearing out so fast...

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The problem is that the Smart 451's track, or wheelbase, or both, may be too narrow for a lot of shop's alignment racks. Also, the only thing that is adjustable is the front toe. Other adjustments would require a specialized frame shop that bend the frame/suspension parts to a correct alignment.

The only time I had my Smart ED aligned, it was at a MB dealer. My regular mom-and-pop shop could not do it. But, I need to look into other alternatives.

Not being able to do an alignment on a smart may have something to do with the age of their equipment. Kind of puzzling to me. My local shop - only a couple years old - had no trouble fitting the smart on the machine and they had the factory specs for the 453 in their computer. One thing I really liked was that after doing the alignment they took me back to the shop and the tech showed me everything they did.

The rear cannot be aligned other than by loosening and retightening bolts and using the slack inherent in them. If you are having inside tire wear, it's likely the result of a toe-in or toe-out issue that may be the result of some damage or bending to some suspension part. The non-adjustable rear toe setting on a non-damaged 451 seems to be spot on and should not result in excessive inner tire wear.

Up front, the only standard adjustment is for toe, and the factory specification is terrible and causes problems like excessive understeer, wandering on uneven surfaces, and wind sensitivity.

The vast majority of modern alignment racks should be able to accommodate a 451.

I have been to 5 different alignment shops in town and none of them can handle my 451 smart. The need a special setup to handle the smaller width of the 451. The joys of living in a small town I guess

OliverB said:

Not being able to do an alignment on a smart may have something to do with the age of their equipment. Kind of puzzling to me. My local shop - only a couple years old - had no trouble fitting the smart on the machine ....

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The track on the 453 is a good bit wider than the 451. I doubt there has been a car sold in the US with a track as narrow as the 451.